Merideth Markum

Exploring my professional community

March 15, 2002

Which nursing journal to choose?

As a result of the increasing interest in health and health professions, the number of medical and health-related magazines and journals has increased greatly.  Two of these are, Nursing2002 and NurseWeek.  Nursing2002, a well known and respected nursing journal, has a specific goal and audience.  Its mission statement is to provide nurses with accurate, current, and relevant information and services to excel in clinical and professional roles.  Whereas NurseWeek, a nursing/health magazine, has a much broader audience of nurses, student nurses, and the general public.

A subscription to Nursing2002 is available to anyone, although it may not be of interest to those outside of the nursing profession.  Advertisements throughout the journal help keep the price to subscribe down to $27.95 for an individual, and $66 for an institution. However, if this is a problem, this journal is accessible through the Internet at www.springnet.com, free of charge.  Subscribing to NurseWeek is much easier and desirable because it is of more interest to the general public and easier to understand.  Many advertisements for new drugs, conferences, books, and nursing uniforms and shoes, make it possible to subscribe to this magazine for free.

The editor-in-chief of Nursing2002 is Cheryl L. Mee, RN, BC, MSN.  She has her own question and answer section for practicing Registered Nurses to write to her and receive answers to their questions in the next issue.  A Registered Nurse writes each article published in this journal.  However, this fact does not ensure that each article is without error.  These articles are factual, giving specific information, and are intended to further the education of Registered Nurses.  There are also articles written to inform about things such as salaries, dealing with grief, and the doctor/nurse relationship.

An article in the January issue of Nursing2002, titled What You Should Know About Chronic Grief, gives Registered Nurses helpful and practical suggestions on how to cope with the death of patients.  In the nursing profession, it is easy to become burned out by the daily routine and the deaths of your patients.  The author explains some signs to watch for to prevent this from happening and what to do to get you back on track if it does occur.  One way is to confront your own mortality.  Another is to take care of yourself by getting enough rest, taking breaks, and not making the job your entire life.  Also, you should make the goals you set realistic, realizing you cannot cure the world of terminal diseases.  Lastly, take the time to grieve and mourn the loss of each patient.  Allowing yourself to do this is very important to your well being as a nurse, as well as a person.  Always remember to talk it out with your fellow nurses, who understand where you are and know how to help you through this difficult time (Furman).

Each of the many editors of NurseWeek is a Registered Nurse.  The article authors are often registered nurses as well, but it is not a necessity.  These articles are not factual ones for learning, but rather morale building and informative of what is going on across the nation with other nurses, the condition of hospitals, patient treatment, and public health care.  In other words, it is geared to the practitioner rather than the student.

Illustrating that the largest audience is mainly practicing nurses, a NurseWeek article titled Renewed Respect was published on March 5, 2002, concerning the difference between how public health care nurses were treated before September 11 and how they are treated now.  Nurses who worked hard jobs and long hours with little or no appreciation or satisfaction were suddenly seen as valuable after the attacks.  Marie McDougall, RN, is a specific example of this.  She worked to cut down on teen pregnancies and counseled people when making life decisions.  After September 11, she became obsessed with remaining informed about what was happening in the nation and took bioterrorism training.  She became known as an expert on anthrax in her hometown, and was used in preparing for bioterrorism at the Olympics.  Oddly enough, even though people wanted to help and become involved after the attack on America, there has been no increase in public health employees.  People need to understand how important these employees are to health care in our country (Bowlby).

In addition to the articles in both Nursing2002 and NurseWeek, there are many features designated to topics such as career opportunities and development, where one can find a new job, or work on her resume.  In NurseWeek, there is a link that shows school and city reports, and house and apartment availability in any city you may be relocating to.  There is also a special feature called RN Village, which is a forum for Registered Nurses by Registered Nurses, with a wide variety of topics such as salary, hospice nursing, traveling nurses, burning out, increasing morale, chest tubes, working the night shift, CPR renewal, and prison nursing.  There is also an education section, which includes a list of nursing schools across the country, a clinical library for any questions you may have, including Mosby's Drug Consult for medication questions, and information about different seminars and conferences.  There are several special features in Nursing2002 as well.  One gives news about availability and uses of new medications.  It also has question-and-answer sections concerning ethical and legal questions, as well as myths versus facts.  An especially helpful feature is a detailed explanation of how to receive your specialty certification in any nursing field.

Choosing between Nursing2002 and NurseWeek would be a difficult decision for me.  I found both to be interesting, informative, and helpful in different ways.  If you need to find and new job, get acquainted with the city of your new job, or just chat with other Registered Nurses, NurseWeek is a good choice for you.  On the other hand, if you need information about new medications, want to specialize but are not sure how, or need to find an article on a specific topic for a school paper or a patient's existing illness, choose Nursing2002.  Either way, you will be getting clear and useful information.

Work Cited

Bowlby, Joanne.  "Renewed Respect."  NurseWeek March 2002:     http://www.nurseweek.com/news/features/02-03/publichealth_print.html.

Furman, Joan.  "What You Should Know About Chronic Grief."  Nursing2002 January 2002: http://www.springnet.com/content/nursing/0202/n2grief.htm.

Return to Home Page